A new Belle and Sebastian album means that life is guaranteed to get a little bit better. I’m not going to pretend to be objective here, I’ll leave that until I’ve heard the whole thing, although even then I’ll likely struggle. Due for release on the 11th of October Belle and Sebastian Write about Love is slowly being announced to the world. The first tracks to reach these ears promise great, if familiar, things. Different enough to be ‘new’, but always recognisably Belle and Sebastian. I wouldn’t want it any other way.
Below is the half hour Q&A programme that they recently recorded and which also includes two live performances of new songs I Want The World To Stop and I Didn’t See It Coming, along with some excerpts of other new tunes. As usual the band are sure footed in how they present themselves and their work and the film is a gorgeous taster of what is to come:
This is their first release since 2006’s The Life Pursuit, although we had the lovely God Help the Girl project to keep us going, which apparently some critics found insubstantial. Those people are wrong. The first single from the latest album is the almost title track Write About Love, and it features Cary Mulligan on backing vocals. You’ll know her from the excellent film An Education from which she won a best actress BAFTA and was Oscar nominated. Listen here and you can sign up to the band’s mailing list while you do so:
For those who care about such things the album, which is once again co-produced with Tony Hoffer, will be available on CD, Gatefold Vinyl and digitally. The full track listing is:
I Didn’t See It Coming
Come On Sister
Calculating Bimbo
I Want The World To Stop
Little Lou, Ugly Jack, Prophet John
Write About Love
I’m Not Living In The Real World
Ghost of Rockschool
Read The Blessed Pages
I Can See Your Future
Sunday’s Pretty Icons
In addition there will be two bonus tracks, Last Trip and Suicide Girl, which will be available as a 7 inch with the vinyl edition in most countries, and with all editions from selected retailers in the US. A further song, Blue Eyes of A Millionaire, will be a bonus track with selected digital outlets as yet to be specified .
If you want to catch them live, and have as yet not got your ticket, then all the dates can be found here. This includes an extra date at the Barras, Sunday 19th December, to add to the two sold out nights of the 20th and 21st. Get in there fast to avoid disappointment.
I’ll leave you with one of my favourite clips of any live performance, from anyone, ever. It’s Belle and Sebastian playing The Boy with the Arab Strap at Coachella in 2002 and it is not only the perfect visual representation of a good time, but the perfect riposte to those who think Belle and Sebastian are anything but a joy. Biased? You bet your life: